


Once Upon A Time

by Everybody_Loves_Chocolate



Series: Without a Word [1]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Crushes, Cute, Fluff, Getting to Know Each Other, I love them so much, M/M, MY BABIES, Mark Lee (NCT)-centric, Meet-Cute, Muteness, Protect them at all costs, Soft Lee Donghyuck | Haechan, Soft Mark Lee (NCT), Teen Crush, Teenagers, a lil cheek kiss, everything is just soft, hyuck is mute, idk if its really meet cute but they meet and its cute so, mark blushes a lot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-15
Updated: 2020-11-15
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:34:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,291
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27575245
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Everybody_Loves_Chocolate/pseuds/Everybody_Loves_Chocolate
Summary: Mark often watched the neighbours' boy dance around in his room and maybe he harboured just a little crush on him. Anyway, as it stood he just couldn't ignore it when the boy tried to communicate with him for the first time.
Relationships: Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Mark Lee
Series: Without a Word [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2176818
Comments: 6
Kudos: 109





	Once Upon A Time

**Author's Note:**

> Did I write this in the span of an hour? Maybe. Do I regret it? No.
> 
> I hope you like it :)

Mark often saw the neighbours’ boy dance around in his room to very very loud music. 

Sometimes, the boy would forget to close his window and then the music would spill over the sounds of the city to Mark's room. He couldn't really be called the neighbours’ boy since he lived in the building next to Mark's and not in a house but in a flat. Technically, their neighbours were the tenants of the other flat on their floor but Mark didn't like them so he decided for himself that that boy was his neighbour.

The boy looked to be around Mark's age. He had light brown hair, apparently dyed if the black roots were any indication. Other than that, Mark couldn't really make out anything else because the boy's window wasn't close enough. 

Mark didn't mind though. The only thing that mattered was that he could see the boy listen to music and dance around his room, mouthing along. He looked cute doing it, sometimes holding a plushie in his hands, dancing with it like it was his partner. There was always a bright smile on the boy's face and Mark liked watching him in the afternoon after a stressful day.

Mark didn't know his name, not even what he actually looked like except for the colour of his hair and his skin. He didn't know what the boy's family was like, nor how old he was or what school he went to. What he did know though, was that the boy's taste in music wasn't limited to one genre.

One moment he would be dancing to some Disney song and the next, heavy metal would boom from the boxes.

Whenever something like that happened, Mark would giggle and watch the boy go from slow dancing with his plushie to head banging aggressively. It was fun to watch and Mark wished he had the confidence to dance around in his room to loud music but he definitely didn't. Not only did his parents not like him listening to music loudly, Mark knew he couldn't dance well and he didn't want to embarrass himself in case anyone saw him. The most he did was play his guitar but since he wasn't that good at it, he barely did it.

Mark thought he would never meet the neighbours’ boy and that he would harbour his tiny crush in secret and maybe even forget about it as soon as he was old enough to move out.

It turned out he was wrong when one day, Mark came home and into his room, looking out of his window in hopes of finding the boy dancing already, just to see him looking back at him. Mark flinched when he saw the boy lean out of his window, instinctively trying to hide. But just as Mark turned sideways to dive onto his bed, the boy smiled brightly and waved. 

Mark faltered, not sure if the boy was waving at him or if he was imagining it. The boy kept waving and when Mark hesitantly raised his hand to give a tiny wave back, his whole face lit up and his whole upper body shook with the force of his arm swinging left and right.

Giggling, Mark turned his body back to the boy and opened his window to lean out of it as well. There was no way they could converse like this, the cars and trains under them but the boy seemed happy and Mark was as well.

The boy pulled out a writing pad from somewhere under his window and began writing on it with a Sharpie. Mark gaped. How had he not thought of that?

The boy seemed concentrated writing on the pad, his tongue stuck between his lips as he scribbled something on it. He looked cute like that.

_Hi, I'm Donghyuck!_

Mark couldn't help but smile. Not only did he know the boy's name now, under Donghyuck's name, he had drawn a little sun and a smiley face. Mark held up a finger before going to search for a writing pad. He wondered how large he had to write for Donghyuck to be able to see it and he wondered why Donghyuck even wanted to talk to him.

_I'm Mark. Nice to meet you :)_

Donghyuck grinned and put his writing pad away, confusing Mark. Had he only wanted to know Mark's name? Or was he already bored of their conversation?

All of Mark's fears were drowned out when Donghyuck turned back to him, forming a heart with his hands. Coincidentally, Mark's heart skipped a beat and he blushed, burying his face in his hands. 

Peeking through his fingers, Mark saw Donghyuck leaning against his window sill, chin propped up on one hand and a soft smile on his face as he looked at Mark. Mark's face was still red when he removed his hands and went for his pad again.

_U wanna come over?_

Donghyuck leaned further forward and for a second Mark was scared he would fall out of the window but then he smiled and nodded and showed Mark both of his hands with splayed out fingers. 

At first, Mark didn't get it but then he understood that Donghyuck probably meant that he would take ten minutes. Mark nodded and gave the boy a thumbs-up. Donghyuck shot him another hand heart before pulling his curtains closed.

Mark, out of breath for some reason, slumped down on his bed, face down into the pillows. He just learned Donghyuck's name today and he already invited him over.

It was then that Mark realized Donghyuck didn't know his last name so he wouldn't know where to buzz. Hurriedly, he jumped out of his bed again, running through the flat to put on his shoes at the speed of light and grab the keys. He pulled the door closed, locking it once and then hurrying down the stairs. 

They lived quite high up so when Mark arrived at the front doors he was panting, keys digging into his hand as he tried to catch his breath.

Not long after Mark had calmed down and sat down on the first step, Donghyuck walked up to the door and smiled at Mark through the dirty glass, waving once again. Mark smiled back and got up, opening the door for Donghyuck.

The boy stepped in and Mark took in every detail about him.

He had pretty brown, almost black eyes, similar to Mark’s, and the cutest button nose. His cheeks looked soft and pinchable, several moles dotting his skin. Donghyuck wasn't much shorter than Mark, just a few centimetres. His hair looked way fluffier up close and if Mark's heart skipped a beat earlier, now it was racing in his chest. 

As Mark took in Donghyuck's appearance, he noticed that the boy had changed his clothes from a black sweater to a bright red one with the initials DL embroidered in golden threads. He also noticed that Donghyuck was still holding his writing pad.

“Hello,” Mark decided to start the conversation with and got a bright grin in return, accompanied with a small wave. Mark wondered how often they had waved at each other in the last twenty minutes.

“Do you wanna come up?” Mark asked, immediately scolding himself for the stupid question but Donghyuck's smile stayed in place as he nodded, clutching his pad closer to his chest. Gesturing up the stairs, Mark lead the way up, always checking whether Donghyuck was still following even thought that was a dumb thing to check. Of course he would follow, Mark had invited him over, not anyone else.

“Um,” Mark started when the both of them were in the flat, shoes carefully put next to each other. “Would you like anything to drink or something?”

Donghyuck shook his head, looking around curiously. Mark pursed his lips and cleared his throat. Why was he so awkward around Donghyuck? Was it because he felt like his heart was going to beat out of his chest whenever he so much as looked at the other boy? Maybe.

“My room is this way,” Mark mumbled and gestured for Donghyuck to follow. He did so with wide eyes, taking in every single picture adorning the walls of their hallway.

When they arrived in his room, Donghyuck did the same there too, wide eyes, cutely opened mouth, writing pad clutched to his chest. Mark cleared his throat again and sat down on his swivel chair as he offered, “You can sit on my bed if you want to.”

Donghyuck nodded slowly, eyes fixated on the guitar in the corner of Mark's room. He sat down and immediately opened his pad to write something on it. Mark tilted his head and watched Donghyuck, little tongue thing even cuter up close.

 _I really like seeing you play that_ , accompanied by a little drawing of a guitar made something click in Mark's brain. Donghyuck was mute. That's why Mark never even heard the faint sound of him singing along to his music. 

There was an apprehensive look on Donghyuck's face like he didn't know if he had made the right choice letting Mark indirectly know that he was mute but Mark couldn't let that happen. He didn't know why someone would dislike someone else just because they couldn't speak but he wasn't someone like that anyways.

More importantly, “You can see me play guitar?”

Donghyuck let out a breath before nodding vehemently, pointing to his own window through Mark's.

_I can see your bed from there_

Mark blushed, burying his face in his hands again as he mumbled, “I didn't know you could see that from your window, god, I'm so embarrassed.”

Donghyuck tapped Mark's wrist, getting him to look up. With the way the light was shining on Donghyuck from behind, the boy seemed a little bit like an angel. Especially with a face like that.

_Would you play it for me?_

Mark bit his lip and played with the tip of his ring finger. He wasn't confident in his playing and it was already embarrassing enough that Donghyuck even saw him. He didn't want the boy to be disappointed so he made a face and admitted, “I'm not really that good to be honest. Um, I don't want to, uh, to disappoint you or anything.”

Donghyuck waved dismissively and shook his head, trudging over to Mark's guitar, picking it up and handing it over to Mark. He looked so expectant, his eyes so bright, Mark couldn't refuse him so he took the guitar with a sigh and Donghyuck grinned, sitting down on the bed again. All the while, his eyes stayed on Mark, wide with wonder and excitement. Pressing his lips together and sighing again, Mark strummed the first cord.

The song he played wasn't difficult, neither was it long and if the way Donghyuck pouted was any indication, the other boy didn't think it was enough. Donghyuck still applauded though, clapping his sweater paws together and giving Mark half a heart attack with his cuteness.

“How old are you?”

_16_

“Oh, we're only a year apart.”

Mark's eyes widened with surprise at the revelation and Donghyuck's mouth formed a little o-shape as he asked whether Mark was older or younger. Chuckling, Mark admitted to being seventeen years of age and Donghyuck's eyes seemed to be sparkling. Maybe he never had any older friends before or maybe he just thought Mark looked younger than he actually was.

Despite Donghyuck being mute, it was really easy to communicate with him. He wrote quickly and neatly, adding a lot of small pictures to his sentences. Mark thought if Donghyuck could talk he'd be one of those people who always use their hands to articulate themselves.

They learned a lot about each other and by the time it was dark outside and Donghyuck's stomach grumbled, they were sitting side by side on the bed. Their shoulders were touching and Mark was pretty sure he never met anyone as warm as Donghyuck.

_Ah, sorry. I think I have to go now_

Mark nodded, somewhat sad to see the boy go. Thankfully, this time Mark's brain kicked in in time so he was quick enough to ask, “Can I have your number?”

Donghyuck beamed, writing his number down on his pad and carefully ripping it off to give to Mark. Somehow, it felt more personal like that, so Mark took the strip of paper with a hot face, putting it in his phone case before getting up from the bed and holding his hand out for Donghyuck to take. Donghyuck didn't hesitate, gripping it gently and pulling himself up. Instead of letting go though, Donghyuck kept Mark's hand in his as they walked through the hallway to the door.

Sadly, he had to let go to put his shoes on. Mark decided then and there that he should accompany Donghyuck at least up to his own front door so he sat down and pulled his shoes on as well. At Donghyuck's questioning gaze, Mark shrugged and mumbled, “I'm a gentleman.”

Donghyuck gave him a silent laugh. Mark had noticed that Donghyuck displayed mannerisms as if he had a voice but he didn't dare asking, not on the day they first spoke with each other.

Donghyuck took Mark's hand again before they descended the stairs and he didn't let go until they stood in front of the front door of his own building, a smile on his face.

Mark remembered only then to ask, “Why did you say Hi earlier?”

Donghyuck, his keys already long inserted and door opened, turned again to place a soft kiss on Mark's cheek before slipping inside.

Mark blushed for the umpteenth time that day.

**Author's Note:**

> This kind of came out of nowhere and as I was writing this there was a whole new universe in my head so I might make this into a series at some point in time.
> 
> I think it would be fun to explore this universe more and I hope you enjoyed what you already got to see from it.


End file.
